World Record Gas Mileage, Fast Girl Skates, and West Seattle Bowl

Dave Beck
07/08/2008

Evan McMullen's car holds the World Record for gas mileage — 376.59 miles per gallon. But it's not a hybrid. Today, Evan tells us how this ultra–efficient fuel system was designed in 1973. We also visit Fast Girl Skates and learn how West Seattle Bowl continues to thrive.

At 2:05 p.m. – West Seattle Bowl

A Harvard University sociologist points to the decline of league bowing as an indicator of how Americans are increasingly disconnected from family, friends, neighbors, and community life. Andy Carl, the co–owner of West Seattle Bowl, tells a different story. Andy has worked to dramatically change the look and feel and faces of bowling in his years managing the lanes in West Seattle. We visit with Andy Carl at West Seattle Bowl, a place that is thriving as other bowling centers across the city and country are shutting down.

At 2:20 p.m. – Super-Mileage Car

Evan McMullen's car holds the Guinness World Record for gas mileage — 376 miles per gallon. It's not a hybrid. There are no solar panels or space–age electric designs. No, this ultra–efficient fuel system was designed in 1973. Evan is the owner of Seattle's Cosmopolitan Motors in Bellevue. In an archive interview from February 29, 2008, he tells Megan Sukys about purchasing the Opel T–1 from the Talladega Motor Speedway.

At 2:30 p.m. – Fast Girl Skates

Few sports encourage you to hug your opponent right after you elbowed her in the face. But in roller derby, that's just part of the game. Seattle's Rat City Rollergirls includes over eighty members from all over Puget Sound. And when the girls need new rollergear, they often turn to Jennifer Savaglio. As the co–owner of Fast Girl Skates, Jennifer tries to bring caring service to a brutal sport. In an archive interview from February 11, 2008, Jennifer tells Megan Sukys how she first witnessed this mix of compassion and agression her first time on the flat track.

At 2:40 p.m. – Gavin Borchert Classical CD Review

This L.A.–based group offers an eclectic program on this splendid CD. Mozart's K. 590, with an unusually prominent cello part, gets a reading of utter elegance and flowing ease, forthright firmness, and spirited momentum. British composer Thomas Ades' Arcadiana is a suite of seven ethereal, nostalgic miniatures, played with the same attention to color and precision they bring to Ravel's 1903 Quartet.

At 2:50 p.m. – A New Yarn

When someone leaves an abusive relationship, the hardest thing is finding a safe place to go. That's why Nancy Murphy created a yarn shop that benefits a program for domestic violence victims. It's called A New Yarn. Nancy's currently the Executive Director of Northwest Family Life, a faith–based domestic violence outreach center. But when she first came to Seattle seventeen years ago, she was looking for a safe place of her own.